Birthday Wishes
by Inuyasha loves sake
Summary: AU. Formerly lovers, Yoh and Hao are separated because their family has a problem with it. Will they do anything to see each other again, even if the penalty is death? FMA Xover. COMPLETE!
1. ch1

**Disclaimer:** Hiroyuki Takei and Hiromu Arakawa, yo.

**WARNINGS!** Angst, torture, character death, yaoi, twincest, slight Anna-bashing.

**A/N:** Like I said in the summary, I crossed it over with Fullmetal Alchemist just to make it interesting because it's one of my new favorites. And I changed some things around...'cause I could and 'cause it's necessary to make the story work. I changed the way the FMA people are related and such...automailers still have automail though, it's also vital to the story...

_aeaeae_

It was a nice spring morning in wherever-the-hell-city-they-lived. The sun was shining brightly, and the birds were chirping- everywhere except for the perimeter of the old Funbari Inn whereas Anna's bitchy aura has scared them away. Yoh had his friends Manta, Horohoro, and Ren over, while Anna sat in another room because she doesn't have any friends. Ren and Horohoro were bickering over nothing important because that's all they ever do, Yoh was drinking a melon soda because that's all he ever does, and Manta was knitting something because he's just gay like that. Now that the scene has been set, we switch into serious mode.

"Hey Yoh," Manta said suddenly, trying to tune out the bickering, "isn't it your birthday soon?"

Hearing this the other two shut up as Yoh grinned and replied, "Yeah. Tomorrow, actually."

Ren and Horohoro looked at each other. The Ainu said, "Serious, man? Then let's have a party!"

Manta nodded, "Yeah, and presents. What do you want the most, Yoh?"

Yoh's grin disappeared and there was a crash in the other room as Anna dropped something. It got eerily quiet.

"...Yoh?"

"It doesn't matter," Yoh said quickly, then added, "It'd never happen..."

"Never happen? What does that mean?" Horohoro asked.

"Nothing," Yoh told him, "...I'll be right back," he got to his feet and went upstairs. More noise was heard in the other room as Anna started cleaning up whatever mess she made, and Manta had an idea.

"Hey, Anna?" Manta stood in the doorway watching her gather pieces of a broken cup. She tensed visibly when he addressed her, "Do you know what Yoh wants for his birthday?"

She stood up but didn't turn to face him, "Yes, I do. And he's right, it'd never happen. Because it's against the law," she turned then, walked right past him and up the stairs to join Yoh.

Manta stared after her, mouth gaping, "Against the law?"

"What Yoh wants is illegal? What could that be?"

"I don't know, but I don't like the way they're acting so mysterious..." Manta flicked his gaze to Ren and Horohoro, "I think we should find out."

_aeaeae_

"Yoh," Anna said sharply, closing the door behind her, "You shouldn't have said that."

His eyes never left the window, "I know."

"They'll start asking questions now. You know you're forbidden to-"

"I _KNOW_!" He shouted, and spun on her so fast she was taken aback. Yoh looked at the ground then out the window again, "...I'm sorry."

She narrowed her eyes at the back of his head, but said nothing more and left the room as quietly as she'd come.

_aeaeae_

Meanwhile on the other side of town...

"Edo, have you seen Hao?" Paninya asked the blonde.

Edward was sitting on the floor, busy working on something that Paninya wasn't even going to try to guess what it was. He kept working as he said, "Can't say that I have...damnit!"

"What'd you do? Break a finger, lose an eye..."

He turned to glare at her, "Very funny. Why do you want to see Hao anyway?"

"Nothing really," she leaned against the doorframe and started absently picking at the lint on her shirt, "just wanted to ask him something."

Ed stopped working and looked up at her, "Oh? Like what...?" Cheesy grin.

"Idiot. It's Hao birthday tomorrow, did you know that? He's been nice enough to take us in, I thought I'd get him _something_..."

He blinked, "No I didn't know that. What're you gonna get him?"

"I don't _know_. That's why I wanted to _ask_ him! _God_, you're dense."

That earned her another grin. "Well, tell me when you find something. And be sure to write my name on it."

"Heh. Like hell I will, mooch."

_aeaeae_

Later that day, Yoh came out of his room and was walking around town with the three who refused to leave until they found out what was so "illegal" about what Yoh wanted for his birthday. For the most part they'd been trying to ask around it and figure it out for themselves, paste together their own solution with what little bits and pieces they could wring out of him. But so far that plan had produced zero results. So...

Yoh was at a soda machine (addict, anyone?) while the others were huddled together a little ways from him.

"So what do we do?"

"I think we should just ask him bluntly. He wouldn't lie to us."

"No, if he doesn't want to talk about it, I don't want to push it."

"Yeah but-"

"Hey, guys?" Yoh called. They all glanced up from their huddle formation, "Yeah?"

"Um...soda?"

"No."

"Okay...I'm leaving now..."

"Oh! We'll go with you!"

Yoh knows something is going on but it too nice- or stupid- to say so, and the others are getting fed up with silence. Suddenly Horohoro steps in front of Yoh and blurts, "What is it you want for your birthday because Anna said it was illegal and we were just-"

"Illegal?"

Manta tugged on his shirt to get his attention while Ren dragged Horohoro off to tell him how stupid he is. "Anna said it would never happen because it was against the law."

Yoh smiled very slightly, "Oh, that. She means it's against A law, not THE law."

Ren and Horo looked up, "A law?"

Yoh leaned against a nearby fence underneath a nice shady tree and sighed, "I guess I'm not going to get away without telling you guys, am I?"

All nod.

"Anna would kill me if she found out."

"So? We won't tell her!"

Yoh slid to the ground and the others seated themselves around him, "Well, you see, I have a...brother."

Blink blink. "Really?"

"And I haven't seen him for almost five years...I really miss him..."

"That's what you want for you're birthday? To see him again?"

Ren scoffed, "What's so 'against a law' about that?"

"It's sort of a family law, a rule..." he continued, "They said he was a bad influence on me, and that I should focus on training to be Shaman King..."

Manta asked, "Is he much older than you?"

He shook his head, "No, he's not older than me."

"How much influence can a younger sibling have on you?"

"He's not younger than me either."

"EH?"

"Oh!" Manta said as it suddenly dawned on him, "A twin?"

Nod, "Yeah."

"Yoh has a twin?" Horohoro demanded, surprised.

Ren crossed his arms over his chest angrily, "It's wrong to separate siblings, especially for no good reason, and twins are inseparable- it's just plain cruel."

"Don't worry, Yoh! We'll help you find him!"

Yoh's eyes widened, "But you don't understand-"

"HEEEY! You shouldn't sit in the middle of the...Hao?" A dark-skinned girl stood hovering over them, her brown eyes surprised and questioning, "When did you...get a haircut?"

Yoh stared at her speechless a moment, "...Hao...?" he jumped up, "You know him?"

"Know him...? Oh, hey! Are you Yoh?"

He nodded vigorously, "Yes I am! How is he? Is he well?"

The girl shifted the weight of the bag she was holding to her other hand, "Yeah, I guess he's okay."

"Paninya!" Behind her stood an annoyed and slightly worried looking boy with long blonde hair, "What's keeping you?"

Paninya glanced back and grinned, flashing him a "V" sign, "I just found Hao's birthday present."

_aeaeae_

**A/N:** How...was that? Weird? Did anyone enjoy it? Very mysterious and confusing and sure to piss off some people but it will get better! I have it ALL planned out! NOW...who shall die first...mwahaha...

By the way! The eventual killing and other such torture is not the point of this story! It's just how I get my kicks... ;p


	2. ch2

**A/N:** Chapter two! It'll get more interesting now considering I don't think I'll be able to stretch the storyline too much this time! w00t!

_aeaeae_

Ed blinked, "Eh? Really? What did you find?"

"Not what. Who. Take a look," Paninya grabbed Yoh in a playful headlock, "It's Hao's brother Yoh. The one he told us about."

"WHAAAT? No way!"

"Yup, too bad. Looks like you can't write your name on this one!" she teased, "I'll take him back and get all the credit!"

"Wait," Yoh struggled against her grasp and she let him go, "Take me back? You don't mean..."

"Well to see Hao, of course," she put one hand on her hip, the other holding up the bag still, "He misses you alot, can't blame him. Don't you want to see him too?"

"Well yes, but no," he took a step back, "No, I can't go. I can't see him. I'm not allowed!"

"You've gotta be kidding, man," Horo said, "After all that you said and this just perfect never-in-a-million-years opportunity comes along and you still say 'No, I'm not allowed'? What's the matter with you!"

"But you don't understand!" Yoh cried desperately, "The punishment for seeing him is-"

"OI! What the hell are you doing?" A second blonde kid drops in on them, "We gotta get out of here!"

"Damn, he's right!" Ed took Paninya's bag from her, "I'll take this, you get that."

"Right," in one quick motion, the dark-skinned girl picked Yoh off of the ground and tossed him effortlessly over her shoulder, "I don't care what your excuse is, I'm not letting you get away just yet."

As the three newcomers took off running with Yoh now their hostage, what else for Manta, Ren, and Horo to do but chase after them?

"Wait for us!"

_aeaeae_

They arrived at Hao's in no time, since the mysterious three seemed in a hurry to get away from...something.

"If you ask me, they're acting like criminals," Ren said to no one in particular as they were going along, "It's very suspicious. What exactly is in that bag?"

The others shrugged it off. They figured they'd find out eventually, and at the moment it wasn't important.

They snuck inside and locked the door behind them, Paninya grinning from ear to ear, "I can't wait to see his face!"

"This is bad..." Yoh protested weakly.

"What's bad?" came a feminine voice, "And who are you?"

"Oh, Winry," Edward said surprised, then smirked, "It's Paninya's 'present', as she likes to call it," he put his hands up in an I-have-no-idea gesture, "Uh, where _is_ Hao, anyway?"

"Mn, upstairs," she answered, fishing around in her pants pockets for something, "but I don't think he wants to be disturbed right now." She beamed as she found what she'd been looking for- a screw.

"Trust me, he'll want to be disturbed for this."

"Well, do what you want, little bro. I'm going back to work."

Ed gave her a funny look, "Huh? I'm not younger than you."

Smirk, "That wasn't a reference to your age."

His eyes slowly widened as he realized what she meant, "_HEY_!"

Ignoring the two's conversation- or more like arguement- Paninya dragged Yoh upstairs with inhuman strength and stopped in front of a door, knocking on it politely, "Oh, Hao! I have a present for you!" she called.

When the door was answered, she shoved Yoh into a pair of unsuspecting arms and declared, "Happy Birthday!" before walking off.

The longhaired boy blinked rapidly, "Yoh?"

"It's been a long time...brother."

_aeaeae_

"So, how do you know Yoh's brother?" Manta asked Edward, whom were both sitting on a old couch downstairs. The others were there too, all sitting around the living room in whatever chairs they could find.

"Hao? WELL, it's a long story..." Ed said grinning, getting ready to go into story-telling mode, "but I'll tell you! Many years ago, I saved him from a huge, vicious, pack of-"

"Oh, can it, you big liar," Winry said as she walked past him, hitting him in the head with her trademark wrench, "Hao saved _your_ ass from that bear cub. Pansy."

"Oh, _THANKS_! Damn, you won't ever let me have a moment, will you!"

"Do something note-worthy, Edo, and I'll give you a moment."

"We're just in the same line of work," Paninya interrupted, "We met up that way, and he offered to let us stay since he had a place and we didn't."

"You were homeless?" Horo asked surprised, "All of you?"

"More like we wandered from place to place," replied the other blonde guy, named Russel, "We chose to live that way, no big deal."

"It _is_ a big deal when you don't have a home."

Russel didn't answer. There was an uncomfortable silence for a while after that, until Winry asked, "Uh, you know, why don't I make some tea? Would you like that?"

"Oh, yes, thank you," Manta said. The other two gave a nod.

"Alright, well, then I'll be right back!"

_aeaeae_

"I can't believe it," Hao said softly, stepping closer to Yoh who had moved to the opposite end of the room, "I've missed you so much..."

"I know," Yoh whispered, "I have too, but..."

"No buts. Stay here," he approached Yoh from behind and wrapped his arms around him, resting his head on Yoh shoulder, "with me."

"...I can't. God knows I want to, but-"

"Because of Anna?" Hao took a step back.

"Anna knows everything," Yoh sounded afraid, "She'll know I was here and she'll tell..." he put a hand to his face, "And then..." Hao hugged him again and this time Yoh clung to him tightly, allowing himself to cry a little, "Why did this have to happen? Why..."

"It was Anna, wasn't it. That day..." Hao felt Yoh tense in his embrace, "That scream, I can still hear it even to this day. I didn't see her face but I know it was her. She did this to us..."

Yoh was silent, and that was all Hao needed to know, "_I'll kill her_."

His brother looked at him with fear-stricken dark eyes, "You can't! You can't just kill someone because you dislike them! If you did that, they'll surely-"

"Because I _dislike_ them!" Hao shouted back, "How about someone that ruined our lives, does that count!"

Yoh couldn't answer, and Hao took the time to calm himself, "I'm the 'evil' one, remember? She's going to pay, I'll see to that," and he left the room, the door clicking shut softly behind him. Yoh's legs gave out and he collapsed onto the floor, shaking, "...but they'll kill you."

_aeaeae_

Roughly an hour went by before Yoh decided to come downstairs, Hao long since retreating to the basement to cool off.

Manta was the first to jump up when he spotted Yoh, "Are you okay, Yoh?"

"Hn? Yeah, I'm fine. Let's go guys," he turned to leave, and the rest followed suit. They all made it out of the house and were walking down the sidewalk when someone said, "Are you sure? You're just going to leave without saying anything to your brother? Who knows when you'll see him again."

Yoh stared ahead of him as he walked, ignoring the question but answering, "Guys...promise me that you won't ever tell them anything about Anna, if they ever asked."

The three exchanged puzzled looks, but agreed nevertheless and continued on their way in silence.

_aeaeae_

Hao came up from the basement just as Yoh and the others left. He watched them through the front window, "Edward."

Ed stood, "Yeah?"

"I want you to follow them."

"And find out where this Anna girl is?"

Hao shook his head, "No, he won't go back to wherever she is tonight, he'll be expecting me to have someone follow him."

"Then why are you-"

"I want you to bring back his friends," he interrupted, "They'll have the information I seek. Force will be needed, though. Sneak up on them..."

"...and get them when they least expect it, gotcha." wink.

"Exactly."

Ed took off tailing them, with stealth and expertise that only years of practice brings.

Hao grinned evilly, a shadow passing over his face, "I'll get my hands on Anna yet."

_aeaeae_

As the sun started to dip below the horizon, Yoh found it more difficult to carry on. "Oh, man. It's alot longer walk into town than I thought. Hey, uh, I'll be right back, 'k?" His friends nodded okay as Yoh made a beeline for the nearest bathroom.

"Must be all that melon soda."

"Haha, yeah."

'Perfect,' Edward thought, watching the three just standing around, 'They're alone now. This is just _too_ easy.' He crept closer and prepared to strike.

"Do you hear something?" Ren asked suddenly.

"Like what?"

"I don't know," he paused, "Like a rustling sound."

Horo shrugged, "I don't hear anything."

"Maybe it's just-" the boy didn't get to finish the thought as somethingvery hardcame in contact with the side of his head knocking him out cold. The other two didn't have much time to react before they both met the same fate in rapid succession.

Ed hefted their bodies over his shoulder as if they weighed as much as a grain of dirt, and started back where Hao was waiting for him.

"Yep, too easy."

_aeaeae_

**A/N:** I don't actually know if Yoh drinks melon soda, I just read in another fic that like every chapter he was drinking one somewhere so I was playing off that. Heh;;

And I know I _could_ just have Hao's normal lackeys take care of them, but I find this more interesting, don't you? No? Well who asked you… 99;


	3. ch3

**A/N:** Omg, ph34r.

_aeaeae_

Ren, Horohoro, and Manta woke to find themselves back at Hao's place- or what they assumed was Hao's place considering Hao was standing in front of them- but this was a room they didn't recognize. They found themselves to be standing upright, but upon further inspection the three noticed they couldn't move either, and realized they were chained to the wall.

"Welcome back," Hao remarked with a sneer.

If Ren was known for anything it was his short temper, and this case was no exception, "What do you want with us!"

"Oh you get straight to the point, don't you? Sorry I had to take such extreme measures. It's simple, really. Just tell me where I can find Anna, and you're free to wander off. I _know_ you know where she is."

Remembering Yoh's earlier words, "We'll never tell you anything!"

"Yeah you sick freak!" Horo added, "Now let us go!"

"I was afraid you'd say that. Very well then, I'll let _my_ friends 'play' with you until you change your minds." Edward and Paninya emerged from behind him, grinning like mad with a look in their eyes that made the captives shrink in terror. Hao walked over to the door, pausing once to say, "I leave them to you. Do what you will."

"With _pleasure_."

_aeaeae_

"Manta!" Yoh called, "Ren! Horo! Where are you guys!" His friends had disappeared on him a few hours ago and Yoh was very worried, he'd been searching the city ever since.

/No...it couldn't be-/ his eyes widened as realization hit him full-force and he turned on his heal towards the Funbari Inn. /Hao's using them to get to Anna! I have to save her/

He got two blocks down when he started to slow his pace, thinking about his earlier talk with his brother.

_How about someone that ruined our lives, does that count!_

"Ruined our lives..." Yoh stopped walking entirely, "What am I _doing_? I _hate_ Anna...and not just because of the things she makes me do now. Back then I wanted nothing more than to see her suffer for what she did. What's different now? Why should I stop him?" He shook his head roughly as if to clear the thoughts, "Because it's wrong to kill anyone for any reason, and they'll kill _him_ if he does! I gotta stop this," he started running again with a new-found determination, and shouted into the night, "THE MADNESS MUST _END_!"

_aeaeae_

Paninya and Ed studied their current prisoners critically. Finally, Paninya sighed, "No girls."

Ed grinned, "Then I guess you no play for keeps."

She smacked him in the back of the head, "It's not funny when you talk like that," she paused, "but I guess you have a point. Who do _you_ want?"

He thought for a moment, "Well, the one kid's kinda pale, but the other is just scrawny. And don't even get me started on the ultra-midget, we'll just give him to Russel for his experiments," he laughed to himself, "Russel _likes_ to 'experiment'."

She hit him again, "Perverted jokes aren't funny either."

"_GOD_, you're worse than _Winry_!"

She hit him for that too.

"I'm scared," Manta whispered to Ren who was closest to him, "What do you think they're going to do to us?"

Ren didn't answer. No answer he could think of would be something the kid would want to hear.

"So which one are you going to pick?" Paninya asked her blonde companion, getting bored and a little aggrivated from their arguing.

"I dunno," Edward put his hands behind his head, "I don't wanna end up looking like Wrath."

"So you opt for disproportion?"

"Hm, point."

Ren was getting ticked from listening to their conversation, "Disproportion? _Scrawny_? I'm not small!"

Ed grinned again, "You're not _short_ small, but you got no meat on your bones, dude," he glanced Paninya's way to see her acting nearly bored out of her mind, "Alright, alright! I pick the albino. I can get a tan."

Horo didn't exactly understand what he meant by the last part, but the first struck a nerve, "I'm not _that_ pale!"

"_Whatever_! Let's get to work!" he tore off his long-sleeve shirt to reveal he wore a tanktop underneath, but that wasn't what surprised them- it was that he also supported a shiny metal arm underneath. The blonde stretched for a moment, then advanced in the Ainu's direction.

"W-what are you going to do?" Horo's voice couldn't help but shake as he spoke the question.

"Honestly?" Edward laughed maniacally, "I'm going to tear you limb from limb."

Horo's eyes widened in terror as Ed slammed his right palm- the metal one- into his right shoulder, digging into the wall, shattering the bone on impact. The boy cried out from the intense pain, and a sickening pop was heard as his arm was trying to be ripped away from his body.

"HORO!" Ren and Manta screamed together, and they jerked at their bonds, trying deperately to get free and help their friend but to no avail. All they could do was watch in horror.

Blood started to seep through his ripped sleeve as Ed's strength was begining to overpower his arm's grasp on the rest of his body, and Horo grit his teeth together, trying to surpress another scream. Finally Edward managed to successfully tear the arm away, one last cry escaping from Horohoro. He laughed to himself lowly, clutching the blood-covered limb to his chest, "I'm surprised you're still conscious. I thought you'd've passed out from the pain by now," he glanced at Horo's agony-twisted face, "I know _I_ did."

He laughed again (a/n: the freak) and tossed the arm to Paninya, "Catch! I'll take that to Winry later. For now..." he focused his attention back to the boy, "I'm not through with you yet."

"STOP! That's enough!" Ren yelled, struggling again, "Leave him alone!"

"Shut up!" Paninya shouted back, slapping him across the face so hard that it left him an a daze, unconsciously obeying her order.

Edward slammed his right palm again, already slicked with blood, into Horo's left kneecap. He let out another shriek along with the nauseating crack that followed the blow.

Manta looked away from the scene, trying to tune out the screams. It was sadistic and cruel, and he simply couldn't take any more of it.

A final cry died on his lips as Horo lost consciousness from the excruciating hurt and, losing patience, Edward yanked harder on the broken appendage. It came off shortly after due to the force he was using on it.

Like Manta, Ren also couldn't bear to watch the scene any longer...but for different reasons.

Ed whiped the sweat off of his forehead with his left arm, then flashed a "V" at Paninya who in turn gave him a you're an idiot look.

"Your turn, if you want," he said to her, dropping the leg to unshackle the rest of Horo's bloody body from the wall, "_Winry_!"

The beckoned girl came down the stairs upon hearing her name, "What is it?"

"Take the arm and leg and wrap them up for me will ya?" He said, picking up the body to carry it properly. The two of them exited the basement, taking with them all proof that Horo was ever down there, aside from the blood-stained walls and floor.

The three were alone in silence for a short while before Paninya said, "Let's get on with it shall we? Scrawny boy?"

Ren kept his head bowed, "...are you going to do the same to me?"

The dark-skinned girl tilted her head to the side, "More or less," she advanced on him, continuing, "Generally I would take both of your legs, but since I'm not playing for keeps..." she leaned in close to his face, "I'll make you a deal."

He only glared, so she pressed on, "What if I said, if you tell _me_ where _I_ can find this Anna...I'll let the both of you go, untouched. How does that sound?"

He scowled, "I spit on your proposal. There's nothing you can offer me that'd make me give in now."

"Oh but I beg to differ," she spoke, voice dripping with malicious intent, "You seemed pretty upset when Edo was picking on your other little friend. You want him back, yes?"

Ren kept quiet, secretly wanting to hear her out.

"How about, in addition to what I said before, I'll make sure you get back your friend. He won't be as good as new I'm afraid, but he'll be alive."

Ren was silent for a long moment, contemplating this. If you really thought about it, black and white, the deal came down to this- Kill Anna for sure, but save himself and Horo. That was pretty appealing to him right now. But on the other hand, he _had_ promised Yoh. Though, if he declined this offer it'd mean the certain death of Horo _and_ himself, and they'd most likely find Anna somehow anyway.

"Though...Russel will be disappointed," she mused to herself, "If you don't mind I'd like to take some compensation for sparing your friend," she pointed a finger at Manta, "The tiny one will do nicely."

"W-what?" Manta gasped, suddenly terrified for his life. He looked up at Ren pleadingly.

Paninya smiled, the evil glint in her eyes returning, "So what'll it be?"

The Chinese shaman didn't know what to do. Now not only at stake was Anna's life and breaking a promise, but Manta's life as well. He felt ashamed that accepting still looked so appealing to him. But...

"I'm sorry..." he finally said, and both stared at him trying to figure out who he was talking to, "...Manta..."

The midget was overcome with a heavy feeling of dread, "...what...?"

He coninued, "I can't let Horo die..." head still bowed so he couldn't see his eyes, "I-I love him..."

Manta's mouth fell open in shock, while Paninya supported a smirk that said I knew it, "Good choice. Now, where is the girl...?"

Lowly, Ren told her about the Funbari Inn and how to get there and everything.

"Perfect. I'll just take _this_ now," she unchained Manta and carried him easily though he squirmed, "and I'll be back with your reward."

Knowing his struggling was in vain in the insane girl's vice-like grip and seeing his short life flash before his eyes, Manta screamed one thing to take out all of the anger and frustration he felt at that moment, "DAMN YOU TAO REN! _DAMN YOU_!"

_aeaeae_

**A/N:** Oh wow, I _could_ stretch it longer! Needless to say, this isn't the end. I was going to make this the last chapter, but last minute I decided to add a bunch of things to the end, and I thought this would be a nice place to cut it off for now. No worry! Next part should be up in a couple of days. Sorry for shortness, OOCness, and Horo-torture, I'm sure to get some flames for that one I think.


	4. ch4

**A/N:** OMG, the end is near! Ph34r the end, mwaha.

_aeaeae_

"_I love you, nii-chan_," whispered the little boy, who couldn't be more than nine or ten years old, as he stared back at a mirror image of himself. His twin held him closer, "_I love you, too_."

He leaned in to capture his lips like they'd done so many times before, when their peaceful moment was interrupted by an ear-piercing scream.

Yoh snapped his head around to see who'd caught them, eyes widening and mouth open to speak, but Hao just stared straight at his brother, not wanting to avert his gaze anywhere but that beautiful face that he wanted to memorize. He heard footsteps running away, and Yoh wanted to go after whoever it was but Hao held him back, "_Stay with me...for as long as you can_."

His brother might have been a naive fool, but he was not. He knew that now their happy days were not to last.

Hao clenched his fists as he reflected on that day, but he calmed himself soon after. He'd get his revenge soon. And it would be _sweet_.

He'd heard from Paninya that one of Yoh's friends had decided to talk after all, and he had promised that he'd give her Anna's body once he was through with that witch. /Actually/ he smirked at the thought/I might just rip her limbs off myself./

_aeaeae_

It was well past midnight, he was sure, but it's not like anyone cared, or he had a place to go. Ren wandered the streets, carrying in his arms the still unconscious form of Horohoro. /At least the girl wasn't lying about giving him back/ he thought bitterly.

He sighed. In his mind, it was his fault...if only he hadn't let his pride get in the way. Sure, he told himself it was the promise to Yoh that kept him quiet, but really he didn't want to give in to the kidnappers. Anna was going to die either way, but because he hesitated, Horo was badly hurt. Not to mention if he'd acted sooner, Manta might still be with them too.

He eventually found himself at the graveyard, and decided it would be a nice place to rest. He set Horo down under a big oak tree and sat beside him.

Ren watched his sleeping face, thankfully peaceful rather than distorted in pain. At least there were no signs of a nightmare. As he kept his gaze on him, he felt a pang in his chest. How could he have let such a terrible thing happen? There was a tear in his eye that he refused to shed, as Ren leaned down and kissed Horo softly. /No more./

No matter how Horo felt about him, he'd protect him from now on.

_aeaeae_

Yoh had been running continuously for who knows how long, and he was almost there. "God, I hope I'm not too late!" A swift turn and down the walk, up the steps and he threw open the door. Panting, he cried out, "Anna! An-"

"Welcome back. I've been waiting for you," came a low, ominous voice. Yoh froze as he realized what was happening. Anna was sitting with her back against the wall, Hao standing in front of her. His attention shifted to Yoh for the moment, but that evilly smug smirk still adorned his face.

"Wha..." the younger twin paused to find his voice, "What are you doing! I told you before it's not worth it!"

His brother went to retort but there was a violent coughing from the third body, "They'll come after you now...do you realize that?" she whispered icily, "I tried to save you from him Yoh, but you couldn't just do as you were told."

"Shut up!" Hao shouted, kicking her weak form and slamming it against the wall before it collapsed entirely onto the floor, "You are in no position to speak, bitch!"

"Hao, no! Leave her alone!" Yoh grabbed his brother's arm and tried to tug him away from Anna, but Hao threw him off and pulled out a knife he had previously kept concealed.

"We'll never have peace until she is rid of!" he proclaimed, raising her body up off of the ground, "This is for you, Yoh. For us," and he drove the knife down into her chest, her trademark black dress soaking up all of the blood pouring from her as he struck Anna again and again with the knife, filling the Inn with her screams with each hit.

And Yoh could only watch in horrified fascination. How many times had he seen this play out in his mind? Murdering her in cold blood with all of his hatred, tearing her to pieces until she begged for mercy with her very last breath. Watching it now, as if in slow motion, actually happening before him- it just seemed so wrong...but on the other hand, so right. He knew he shouldn't, but he was really enjoying this. Finally that disgusting bitch got what was coming to her. What she deserved, for ever trying to take him away from his Onii-chan...

/Onii-chan...I'm sorry.../

_aeaeae_

They'd been there at the graveyard for a hour or so, it was nearing dawn and Ren was starting to doze off. He had his eyes set on Horo as they started to close, vision blurring- when a shifting and a rustling noise came from the prone body. Ren blinked himself awake, rubbing at his eyes and mumbling a concerned, "Horo?"

There was groan, as the Ainu shaman tried to ease himself up but couldn't. "...Ren? Why can't I..." he stopped and his face drained of color as he remembered just exactly _why_ he couldn't get up.

"It's okay, I'm here..." Ren said, trying to be comforting. He helped Horo up and leaned him against the tree.

"...Ren?"

"Yes?"

"You're freaking me out, dude. Are you actually being nice?"

Ren's face flushed red, a little from anger but mostly embarrassment, "What do you mean, I'm 'freaking you out'! You'd be dead if it weren't for m-" He stopped himself there, throwing a hand over his mouth. Horo's eyes were downcast, "...yeah...thanks, I guess..."

Ren sighed, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that..."

"No," the other shook his head slowly, "It's okay..."

"No, it's not! Everything is all my f-"

"Hey...?" Horo interrupted him, "Where's Manta...?"

The Chinese shaman turned away, "He's...gone..."

He paled again, "G-gone...? W-what do you mean, _gone_...!"

"I mean he's **GONE**, Horo! They..._killed_ him..." Ren made sure to keep his face from the other's view. If Horo saw him, he might suspect there was something more to his answer.

"Oh...man..." his voice trembled, "Those- those _monsters_! How _could_ they! And Yoh's own brother..." he punched the ground with his left fist- his only fist- as a tear slowly slid down the side of his face. Ren watched his reaction out the corner of his eye, and moved closer to him. As he wiped away the tear he said, "...it's okay now, though. We're still here, and we can keep his memory alive..."

Horo nodded at him, "Yeah...and..." he paused, "Wait does that mean Hao's on his way to get Anna? W-we could stop him! That psycho needs to be stopped!"

Ren shook his head sadly, "I got you out of there hours ago. Most likely he's already gotten her."

"What...happened, after..." he made a vague gesture to his missing arm, "...I mean, I don't want to hear about what they must've done to Manta but, how did they find out about Anna?"

Those cat-like eyes widened a margin, but it was enough for the ice shaman to inquire on, "What was it? C'mon, tell me!"

/I'm going to have to tell anyways.../ "I-It was me..."

"What! Why!"

"The girl promised to give you back in exchange for Anna and Manta!" Ren blurted, instantly realizing he SHOULD NOT have said that!

Horo stared, "W...wha..." he swallowed and took a breath, "W-why would you do that...? Why would you-!"

He was silenced when Ren suddenly closed the space between them.

_aeaeae_

Yoh sat on the back porch of the Inn, gazing thoughtfully at the brightening sky.

/Onii-chan.../

"Yoh?"

Wordlessly, the younger twin slowly turned his head at the sound of his name, to meet matching brown eyes.

"I took care of the body..."

Yoh nodded, his eyes trailing upward again.

Hao sighed, and took a seat next to his brother, "Are you mad at me?"

He was quiet for a long moment. Then, "...no. I'm not mad. Actually, I'm..." he smiled slightly, looking Hao in the eyes, "...happy."

A questioning glance, "Happy? How so?"

"Well...I'm free," his attention fleeted to the stars again, and this time so did Hao's. "I never really liked Anna. I was always looking for a way out."

"Then why did you try to stop me?"

"I don't know...I guess I was just worried about you. We'll probably have to hide from now on..."

A small silence passed over them as they each contemplated their current situation. "No."

Yoh looked at him, startled, "What?"

"We won't run away anymore. I'm not afraid. I say we...we get rid of them all." He watched his brother for a reaction, and it came as a small surprise when Yoh smiled- dare he say- evilly. Or as evil as possible for carefree Yoh. "...I'd like that."

Hao smiled back and, for no reason at all, just started laughing.

"What? What so funny?" demanded Yoh, afraid that his big brother was laughing at _him_.

"Nothing, Yoh," he said as his chuckles subsided, "I'm happy too."

And this made Yoh UBERLY happy and thus pounced on Hao and glomped him tightly. And of course this caught Hao off-guard and he fell backwards with Yoh lying on top of him (a/n: mm, yummy). All caught up in the moment Hao just kissed Yoh then and...I'm making too light of this aren't I?

"A perfect ending," Yoh mumbled, snuggling closer to the other as they lay still on the back porch in each other's arms.

"No," Hao said softly and Yoh lifted his head up to look at him, "It's a perfect beginning."

Yoh let his head fall again, finally ready to let sleep claim him after such a stressful all-nighter. Hao was about to join him too, when he noticed the sky was a shade brighter. He could see the first few rays of dawn.

"Oh hey," Hao said as if a thought had just occurred to him, which it had.

"Hm?"

"Happy birthday, Yoh."

"Happy birthday, Onii-chan."

-**OWARI**-

**A/N:** STAY TUNED FOR A SHORT EPILOGE. Omg, I actually laughed evilly when I wrote the Anna-murder scene. So what did people think? I want NO Anna-related flames! I WARNED YOU! All other types of flames are welcome. Oh, and comments too!

WHAT THINK YOU? REVIEW IT!

**-OTHER RANDOMNESS (you don't have to read this if you don't want to)-**

OMFG my SECOND story for me to EVER finish I'm so excited! And If you haven't, be a dear and go read my FIRST to EVER finish a story EVER (a.k.a. "Fortune"). Oh dude, BTW, I stole the whole "perfect ending/begining" from Anastasia...uh, yeah;;

Hey it's my birthday today! So everyone go sing the German birthday song! So that everyone who doesn't know it can join in, it goes:

Happy birthday to you

Marmalada im shoe (marmalade in your shoe)

Aprikosa im der hosa (apricots in your pants)

Happy birthday to you

...What? I took German for a year and the teacher always made us sing it.

(that's not how the words are spelled, but I wrote it that way so you'd know how to say it)


	5. epilogue

**A/N:** When I was writing the last chapter, something occurred to me that I wanted to do but I couldn't think of a way to fit it in and still have my lovey-dovey ending. SO THAT'S WHY EPILOGES ARE BORN! The last chapter is the real ending! This is just extra. I...guess you could consider it the ending...

_aeaeae_

A few days later... (hell, why not? they fucked for a few days before going on their trip)

It was a little before midnight when the twins decided to leave. Yoh hadn't seen or heard from any of his friends since they'd disappeared, but he wasn't too concerned. His brother said he'd let them go, so Yoh figured they just didn't have time to come visit. Personally he got the feeling Ren and Horo were pretty close, so they probably just wanted to spend some time together. And Manta? How should he know, maybe he just went back to cram school full-time.

"Have everything, Yoh?" Hao called.

"Uh, yeah," The younger sibling emerged from the front door of the Inn carrying a small bag of belongings, sliding it closed behind him. "The few things I'll take with me from this hell-hole."

Hao blinked. He'd never heard his brother curse, even something as mild as 'hell'. "I need to spend more time with you..." he stated offhandedly.

"Oh? Well we could stop by a hotel on the way to Izumo..." he raised an eyebrow suggestively. Hao just laughed.

They walked side-by-side to edge where the walkway meets the road, and turned around to face the house.

"If you'd be so kind."

Hao nodded to his brother, then focused his attention to the house.

"Burn."

At the mere sound of a word, the building was engulfed in flames, like a wild animal lapping up a yummy treat.

Yoh grinned widely, "I always loved your talent."

"Yes, there's something beautiful about a burning building in the dead of night. Wouldn't you agree, dear brother?"

Yoh gave a nod. They decided to stay there and watch it go up in flames, Hao setting it on fire again after the firefighters came and left.

Yoh: Those bastards putting out our lovely fire.

Hao: Yeah. You tell 'em, otouto!

So they watched, letting evil memories burn in the flames of their love, and thinking of all the new happy beginnings they'd have burning all of their other relatives' houses.

**-OWARI...uh, again-**

**A/N:** Holy crap that was a little too short. Oh well, it wasn't supposed to be an actual chapter. YEEESSS! BUUURN! MWAHAHAHAHAHA!


End file.
